Explosive issue -- just how much harm should the Navy be allowed to do to marine life through sonar and live-fire testing? KITV4's Paul Drewes has our top story. In these recently released regulations, the Navy would be permitted to perform 60,000 hours of sonar testing and detonate 34,000 explosives in waters around Hawaii and off California. Conservation groups worry how all of that will affect the thousands of marine mammals, and are now suing the federal government for more safeguards. shot of whale breeching Above the water, these massive marine mammals are a sight to see... While underwater they are something to hear ... 3:01 these mammals have very acute hearing, to find food, mate, :03 of whale song Humpback whales perform a particular song while they are in Hawaii's waters. But some fear those songs will be interrupted by a different kind of sound. nat of explosion from rimpac 3:15-3:22 when you deafen them through loud blasts of sonar you can cause damage to those animals, destroy their hearing The federal government just released regulations to minimize the effects of that Navy training on marine mammals, which included reducing sound levels whenever a whale or dolphin is spotted. But a collection of wildlife organizations feel it doesn't do enough. They have filed a lawsuit to challenge the plan, which would allow even endangered species like Hawaiian monk seals and Hawaii's false killer whale populations to be harrassed by sonar training, hundreds, even thousands of times a year. 7:59-8:12 the same fisheries service just listed false killer whales as endangered, down to 150 of them, they are going to be subjected to this navy training if we don't set aside a few protected areas where they can rest, feed, and survive The Navy is not a party in the current lawsuit, but issued a statement saying, "Sailors need to train in realistic conditions with equipment that has been tested under realistic conditions before they deploy into harm's way. The Navy has been training and testing for 60 years without evidence of major impacts on marine life." nat of boat washing Tony Mathis and his crew are getting their boat the Mazel Tov ready for another day of fishing. During his time on the water, he's seen the effect the Navy's sonar testing had on wildlife. 11:22 "As a fisherman i've seen an impact, the bite drops its virtually non-existent when you have subs and ships out there operating" Other sailors say they are also concerned about the long-term effects of sonar on marine mammals and worry we may not see the true impact, as animals that die rarely wash up on our shores. But agree with Capt. Tony that some training is important. 11:38 i understand the necessity of what they are doing, freedom has a price.. 1:50 all that we've been asking is for the navy to take a look at alternatives that would allow the navy to do its mission at a much less cost to these mammals The groups suing the government hope to set aside areas already designed as biologically important to marine mammals - by the federal government -- like the leeward side of the big island as off- limits to sonar or explosive

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